Most Live at Home

The vast majority of seniors live at home. In fact, in 1996, 93% of all people aged 65 and older lived in a private household. Fifty eight per cent of them lived with either their spouse or a common-law partner. Another 7% lived with members of their extended family, such as the family of a daughter or son, while 29% lived alone and 2% lived with non-relatives.

There are, however, substantial differences in the living arrangements of seniors, depending on their age and gender. Senior women, for example, who tend to outlive their spouses, are considerably less likely than senior men to be living with a spouse. This is particularly the case for women in older age ranges. Indeed, only 11% of women aged 85 and older, and 31% of those aged 75-84, lived with their spouse in 1996, compared with more than 50% of both men and women aged 65-74 and senior men in all age ranges. In contrast, 58% of women aged 85 and older lived alone, as did 49% of women aged 75-84.